


Never Good Enough

by temporaryistemporary



Series: a chosen family [5]
Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Character Phil makes me unreasonably angry, Enderman Hybrid Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Fundy and Eret are only there for like a second, Hybrid Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Panic Attacks, Protective Wilbur Soot, Ranboo Needs a Hug (Video Blogging RPF), What else is new, i just want him to be a good dad for once, let the kids be happy and be friends, phil being a bad dad again, platonic, this is about the characters not the people
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-15 21:40:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28945293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/temporaryistemporary/pseuds/temporaryistemporary
Summary: Ranboo just wanted friends that cared about him. Is that too much to ask?takes place after Peace
Relationships: Ranboo & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Ranboo & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo & Wilbur Soot
Series: a chosen family [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2119869
Comments: 29
Kudos: 584
Collections: Completed stories I've read





	1. Do you see me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING* Ranboo has a small panic attack and there’s brief mention of Tommy’s tower from the end exile and Tubbo thinking he was dead

Ranboo had woken up in the panic room again. It was unclear to him how he had gotten there, but he had learned not to question it too much. Attempting to dig too deep for his memories always left him feeling like his head would burst from the pressure, so he tended to scan through whatever memories sat blissful and present on the surface level and left the rest to his memory book.

He really wasn’t sure why he was in the panic room though, his tail thrashed erratically behind him as he glanced around at the walls in unease. Dream was gone, imprisoned and unable to leave. There was no reason for Ranboo to be here anymore. So why?

The memories that Ranboo was able to grasp at before he had made it to the obsidian room were fuzzy and just on the wrong side of coherent. He remembered a blizzard, a house in the snow, voices that should’ve been familiar to him. He couldn’t recall what they had been talking about, but somehow he knew it wasn’t good. He had left after that, he must’ve. Must have run or teleported or _something_ all the way back to his panic room. But that was all his disorganized mind could piece together. He needed his memory book. _Where was his memory book?_

He quickly flicked through his inventory slots, finding his tools, food, building materials, a grass block, and a few other miscellaneous items, but no book. His ears drooped and his breaths began coming out in short, quick bursts. Panicking, he was panicking. _Had someone taken it? Who would take it? Why?_

Ranboo threw himself to his feet, vision blackening at the edges from vertigo. He began stumbling his way to the exit, holding onto the wall for support, and nearly tripped over something along the way. Eyes shifted down by his feet to glare at the offending object and- _oh_. His book. It lay open on the ground, looking like it had been thrown aside carelessly. Ranboo slid back down to sit on the floor next to it, clawed hands carefully scooping it up to scan through the pages for any new entries.

Unfortunately the newest page was illegible. It was written in an incoherent mixture of English and Endspeak and the handwriting itself was shaky, like he had been unable to properly hold a quill at the time. He must’ve been at the height of his panic when he wrote it.

Ranboo sighed and flipped through the other pages, quickly looking over older entries and paused at his friends page. It had been altered with the same, messy scribbles from the most recent page. For whatever reason, Phil’s name had been violently scribbled over under the “Friends” category and placed under “STAY AWAY” with a hesitant question mark, and Techno’s name had also been crossed out, albeit less frantically, and was moved to “Unsure”. It left his friends list depressingly bare. There were other markings on the page but they were just as incomprehensible as the rest (he could just barely pick out the words _memory_ & _manipulate_ , and it was enough to send a shiver down his spine), so Ranboo elected to ignore it for now.

What was he supposed to do now? He still had no idea why he was there, but it must’ve had something to do with Phil and Techno, if their altered status was anything to go by, so he couldn’t go to them. L’Manberg was gone and he didn’t trust Jack enough to stick around Snowchester. He was back to square one again.

Alone. With no one to trust and nowhere to go.

A pained warbled noise, one that was Enderman-like in origin, escaped his throat, and Ranboo buried his head in his knees. He dropped the book from his hands and roughly gripped his legs, curling into himself and trying to appear as small as possible as his tail coiled itself around his leg. A sob escaped him and he let out a tired _vroop_ as tears ran down his face, leaving one side of it stinging and his lungs burning as he heaved out wail after wail.

He sat there for what felt like an hour, sobbing, and mourning for something that never seemed to stay for very long as far as Ranboo was concerned. _Why couldn’t Ranboo have people that cared? People that he could trust? Was that too much to ask?_

Ranboo couldn’t dwell on that right now. He needed to figure out what to do next. Needed to find a place to go now that he couldn’t go back to Techno’s. He would have to go back and get his pets at some point but they would be fine for now, they had plenty of food and water to last until Ranboo could get back to them. And he would go back for them. But not now.

He quickly gathered up his book, putting it back in his inventory, and exited his panic room. He would need to find somewhere to build a house, and some building material. Somewhere far from the others maybe, so it wouldn’t be disturbed. Ranboo didn’t like the idea of possible hostiles finding his base while he had no one to back him up in case things went wrong.

 _But_ , Ranboo thought as he gazed into the crater that was once his home, _maybe it didn’t matter_. L’Manberg had plenty of people fighting for it and they still lost. _Maybe-_

_“Hey!”_

Ranboo jumped at the shout, head whipping around to find the source, landing on a vaguely familiar face. It was Ghostbur- _No_. It was Wilbur. Sure, Ranboo had seen the man around since he had been resurrected, had heard Phil ranting to Techno about him one early morning while they were tending to the turtles (had seen him glare daggers at Dream after coming through the portal and Ranboo was certain the only reason Dream had come out of that with his life in tact was because of Eret’s firm hand on Wilbur’s shoulder throughout most of the confrontation), but had yet to actually talk to him. So it was a big surprise to Ranboo to see the man casually strolling up to him, idly kicking debris out of his path.

“You’re...Ranboo, right?” Wilbur asked when he finally came to a stop next to the hybrid. “My memories from Ghostbur aren’t fully there, but you seem familiar.”

_Huh._

Ranboo slowly nodded at the question, careful to keep his gaze just a little to the left of Wilbur to avoid locking eyes. “Yeah that’s me. It’s nice to actually meet you. Alive you, anyway.”

His tail swished anxiously behind him as he spoke. He had only ever met Ghostbur, and no one had ever really talked about Alivebur (and what was said about him was rarely ever good). The only person that would actually say anything about Wilbur without acting like the man's existence was some big conspiracy was Tommy. Ranboo had heard both good and bad things from him. And the bad things Tommy had mentioned were sometimes scarier than anything else he had heard about the man from the others.

Wilbur chuckled in response. A nice, warm sound that made some of the edge in Ranboo’s stance soften. “You too, man. Like I said, I don’t remember too much, but I think Ghostbur thought you were pretty cool, and we didn’t really get to talk much during the whole Dream thing, so when I saw you over here I figured I’d reintroduce myself.”

Ranboo perked up at the mention of the spirit. Ghostbur had been nice, if a bit spacey, and Ranboo had liked him a lot. He also appreciated the effort Wilbur was making, the man seemed genuine and rather kind now that they were in a less high stress situation.

“So,” Wilbur started, “what are you doing around here? Tubbo told me you were staying with Phil.” The way he said the name was odd, but Ranboo couldn’t place the tone.

Ranboo shifted nervously, tail wrapping around waist, eyes studying the crater. “I uh… I was actually thinking about building my own house somewhere, instead of staying with- with Phil.”

A low hum answered him, and Ranboo could feel Wilbur’s gaze on him. It made his skin crawl, and his mind screamed at him to hide, but he stayed put.

“Are you alright?” The voice snapped Ranboo out of his stupor and he looked back, eyes trained on Wilbur’s nose and seeing his mouth twitch down in concern. The man then sent him a small smile once he had his attention and Ranboo could feel himself relaxing again. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

That startled a laugh out of him and Wilbur’s grin widened into a more playful one. He bumped his shoulder into the younger boy’s with a laugh of his own and then waited.

Ranboo stood for a moment longer, lacing and unlacing his fingers together. “I-” He paused and swallowed. “Is there something wrong? With me, I mean. Is there something wrong with me?”

He heard more than saw the man next to him startle, sucking in a harsh breath and choking out an alarmed, _“What?!”_

And suddenly Ranboo was spilling out everything, words falling out of his mouth without a filter. “I mean, I know some people are still mad at me for not picking a side, because I wanted to pick people. And I did pick people. I wanted to stay with Phil and Techno because they were nice to me and Phil offered me a place to live without making it about choosing a side. And it was really nice! I have my own shack with all my pets and it was so nice! But then I woke up in my panic room-”

_“Your what?”_

“-and now my notes are all weird and I don’t know what’s going on or what to do! And I don’t think I can trust Phil now, I wrote it in my memory book so that must mean something. But I don’t remember why! I never remember and I’m so confused and-”

Ranboo nearly threw himself backwards when he felt hands grab his, calming when he realized they were gently pulling his clenched fists away from his head. He hadn’t even realized he had been tugging at his hair until the pressure was gone and his scalp was stinging. He looked up from where Wilbur was holding his hands and settled his eyes to man’s brow.

“Why am I always alone? Why does it seem like I’m never good enough?”

Wilbur’s hands squeezed his and he was looking at him with another one of those looks that Ranboo couldn’t figure out. He had never been very good at reading emotions. The lack of eye contact made it even harder.

“Ranboo? Can I hug you?” That shocked Ranboo and Wilbur must have noticed because he quickly backtracked. “I know you don’t know me, and you can say no. You just look like you could use one.”

 _He did need one_ , Ranboo thought to himself, _he needed one very much_. And he nodded.

Almost instantly he was pulled to Wilbur’s chest, head tucked into his shoulder, and arms were wrapped firmly across his back. Ranboo melted into the embrace, pulling his own arms loosely around Wilbur and releasing a soft _vroop_ when a hand carded gently through his hair. The hand smoothed away the ache left behind by Ranboo’s claws and his tail dropped from where it had been swishing behind him to rest loosely, almost touching the ground.

“You are enough, Ranboo.” Wilbur spoke up after a few minutes. “It’s not your fault other people can’t see how great you are.” Ranboo let out an inhuman warble at that and Wilbur gave him a comforting squeeze. “You know, Ghostbur liked you very much. He never had one bad thought about you. And you might not think it, but he had quite a few bad thoughts about some of the others, he just never remembered them. But I do. I remember the feelings anyway. He would get frustrated with some of the others when they would treat him like a child. And he got very upset when they would treat him like he was me. Like he was alive. He was so angry at Dream, for many things, but he would always forget about it pretty quickly. But he never had a bad thought about you. He thought you were great, and he was so happy you and Tommy were friends.”

Ranboo let out a shaky breath, lifting his head just enough to peer over the man's shoulder at the ruins. “I don’t know if we’re friends anymore.”

“Do you want to be?”

Ranboo nodded slightly, tucking his head back into Wilbur’s shoulder with wobbly coo.

The hand on his head ruffled his hair, and Wilbur chuckled at the whine the hybrid made. “Let me let you in on a secret, kid. Once Tommy is friends with someone, you have to have done something real fucked up to actually get on his bad side. And even then he still might not leave you alone.” Ranboo huffed out a laugh at Wilbur’s exasperated tone. “He still talks about Techno sometimes, wants to make up with him or some shit. So that should give you an idea for how far you’d have to go for Tommy to not consider you two friends.”

Ranboo sighed, clawed hands clenching and unclenching on Wilbur’s sweater but not piercing the fabric. “Thank you.”

“Of course.”

Ranboo pulled away from the hug, feeling a lot better than he had in awhile, and gave Wilbur a shaky smile. He was rewarded with a smile of Wilbur’s own, warm and kind. The man studied him for a moment but it didn’t make Ranboo uncomfortable like it normally would.

“I don’t think Eret would mind if you stayed in the castle.”

“What?” Ranboo didn’t know much about the Royal, had only interacted with them after the festival and during Doomsday, had seen the way they stood by Tommy’s side and stared down their nose at Dream like just interacting with the man was beneath them. But they seemed kind, afterwards, had smiled at Tommy and Tubbo with such softness, and spoke calm and sweet. They seemed very nice. But that didn’t mean they would want him in their home.

Wilbur was quick to wipe away any concern, though. “They wouldn’t mind, I swear. Eret’s been talking about doing rounds with all the former citizens and checking in on everyone to make sure they had a place to stay. And they were planning on offering anyone who didn’t, a room in the castle if they want it. I’m living there now and so is my son, Fundy. And Tommy has practically moved in even if he won’t admit it. Tubbo stays there too, but he also has Snowchester. You’re welcome to join, if you want. You don’t have to decide now, but I would at least insist on you staying the night tonight.” Wilbur said, shooting a cautious look around the area. The sun had started to set in the time they had been standing there and mobs would come out soon. “It’s getting late and I would feel better if I knew you were somewhere safe and not out getting swarmed by zombies.”

Ranboo thought about it for a moment. Wilbur seemed friendly, he hadn’t gotten mad at Ranboo’s outburst and had even comforted him. He decided he liked this Wilbur. Eret was more complicated. He didn’t know them very well but they seemed like they were a good person, and Wilbur was vouching for them, and he determined that was enough for him. And Tommy…

Wilbur had said Tommy probably still thought of him as a friend, and he wanted that so bad. He felt awful when the boy had gotten exiled, and watching him get worse and worse with each visit scared him. He had already known Tommy was ok when Tubbo had come back from Logstedshire, but hearing the news of the tower had sent a pang of panic through his heart, even with the knowledge that Tommy was alive and well at Techno’s. He had been worried for him ever since, and especially when the boys had set off to fight Dream. Seeing them both alive, if a bit bruised and battered, had almost sent him to the floor. He wanted to talk to Tommy again.

He wanted to speak with Tubbo too. The other boy had seemed fine with him, back during the fight with Dream, had leaned into him when Ranboo helped steady him. Ranboo had been scared to lose that friendship too. He nearly had when the whole memory book fiasco had come about. He knew Tubbo wasn’t happy with it, but the boy had been distracted pretty quickly by the oncoming threat. And he hadn’t been ignorant of the conversation between Tubbo and Quackity either. Of how Quackity had wanted to execute him, and Tubbo had defended him. He shivered at the thought. He needed to talk to Tubbo. And to Tommy.

Ranboo breathed in deeply and rubbed at his eyes. “I think one night wouldn’t hurt. I don’t know about staying but… I think I want to give it a try.”

Wilbur didn’t say anything, just tossed an arm over Ranboo’s shoulder and began to lead him to Eret’s castle.

* * *

  
Eret properly introduced themself when Wilbur and Ranboo stumbled their way through the front doors, and promptly asked if he had eaten dinner. Ranboo was then shown to the dining room where he sat and ate and chatted happily with the Royal while Wilbur went off somewhere further into the home. He came back quickly with Tommy, Tubbo, and Fundy in tow, the younger two immediately running up to the hybrid and sliding in to sit next to him. Fundy and Wilbur came to sit around by Eret, starting their own conversation and leaving the three youngest to speak about whatever.

The three eventually migrated to Tommy’s room, still talking and catching the others up on what they had all been doing. They were all sat on Tommy’s bed, leaning on each other as they spoke. Ranboo hadn’t realized just how much he had missed this. Just relaxing together without political pressure or the threat of danger hanging over everything they do. It was nice.

It was nice and Ranboo was calm and warm and content. His head felt heavy and he slowly tilted to rest it on Tommy’s shoulder. Ranboo could feel himself drifting off, not noticing the other two in the room growing quiet. A hand ran through his hair and he unwittingly let out a low noise, almost like a purr. Giggling erupted in the room and he went to lift his head but was quickly interrupted by another hand scratching along his scalp. He practically collapsed back against Tommy, the humming noise starting again and hands continuing to comb through his hair. He was out within minutes. Safe and happy and with his friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might write a second chapter for this but I’m not sure so for now I’m leaving it as completed


	2. Do you hear me?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ranboo and Wilbur have a few important talks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING* accidental self harm (Ranboo cuts his palms with his claws on accident) and Ranboo has a short panic attack but it’s not detailed

Ranboo didn’t really have dreams, per se. He either swam through the liquid blackness until he awoke or he would see snippets of memories, usually the ones that were already easy to recall, but occasionally the more elusive ones would slip through the cracks of his mind and Ranboo would have to make a dive for his memory journal when they were over.

And so it hadn’t been a surprise when Ranboo had come to himself in the middle of scribbling down the lastest uncovered memory, having to keep extra still so as not to wake the other two boys cuddled up to his sides. A shaky _vroop_ escaped his throat as he recalled the way Phil had flippantly suggested the idea, like him and Techno had been talking about the weather. At least the Piglin hybrid hadn’t seemed all that into the plan, but he hadn’t exactly condemned it either. Ranboo was thankful he had at least some peace of mind when editing his friends list, which had been updated again with Wilbur, Eret, Tommy, and Tubbo under “Friends”, and Fundy to “Unsure” (as he hadn’t talked to the fox hybrid as much but he seemed okay for the moment). He had no idea what would’ve happened had he completely forgotten about the event and gone back to Phil and Techno, and he shuddered imagining how the two would go on to pretend to be nice just to use his own faulty memory against him. The echoing, nightmare voice of the admin had done enough to mess with Ranboo’s head and corrupt his memories, and he would kindly ask that his head be left alone as it did enough to deceive him with no outside help.

Carefully, Ranboo placed his book back into his inventory and attempted to make his way out of the pile of blankets that Tubbo or Tommy must have thrown over them sometime after he fell asleep. He managed to get his feet back on solid ground with minimal issue, only stopping to softly croon at Tubbo when the other boy shifted, eyes fluttering like he was on verge of waking before settling again. Ranboo quickly fixed the blankets back around the other boys, tucking them in and making sure they were comfortable, before exiting the room.

The sun shining through the windows told him it was late in the morning, and he hoped to find either Eret or Wilbur to thank them for allowing him to stay for the night before he headed off. He assumed leaving without a word would most likely be bad etiquette, and he didn’t want to upset a Royal _and_ an ex-general on top of already bothering them the day before. They were very kind for feeding him and giving him a place to sleep but he wasn’t about to push that kindness any farther.

Ranboo passed by a larger window, looking over a garden, bright and blooming with a figure sitting by a small pond located near the middle. His tail swirled anxiously and he made his way down the steps and to a large door similar to the one at the main entrance. He stepped out into the garden, softly making his way to the center where Wilbur was seated, humming to himself. The man turned to greet him as Ranboo approached.

“Did you sleep okay?”

Ranboo bobbed his head, eyes shifting to the plants scattered meticulously around. “Yes, um, thank you for… letting me stay.”

“Of course. I told you Eret wouldn’t mind.” Wilbur patted the grass next to him, and Ranboo rocked back on his heels before carefully lowering himself to sit, tail curling itself around his waist.

“I’ll have to thank them too, before I go.”

“Right,” Wilbur hummed, angling his body towards Ranboo but keeping his eyes on the water. Ranboo appreciated that, there was no pressure to hold the man's gaze (not that he’d be able to anyway). “About that… You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like.” Wilbur ignored his questioning warble. “Eret mentioned it to me last night, they quite like having people around the castle and I know Tommy and Tubbo would probably like to have their friend close by.”

Ranboo was completely caught off guard. He was fully prepared to go back to being alone, living somewhere far away with just himself to rely on. It wasn’t a pretty life but he had done it before. But here Wilbur was, telling him he didn’t have to, that he could stay and be with his friends and Ranboo wanted that so bad. All he ever wanted was his friends.

“I-” He choked on own breath, claws digging into the soft earth. “I’d like to, I really would but- I don’t- I don’t know if I…” Ranboo trailed off, words swept away in the wind.

“It wouldn’t be a side, if that's what you’re worried about.”

Ranboo whipped his head around, eyes trained on Wilbur’s cheek, just below his eye. _How had he…?_

Wilbur chuckled at the teens baffled expression. “Tubbo told me about that. Said you got real worked up at everyone for choosing factions over people.” Ranboo’s face darkened in embarrassment. He wasn’t proud of himself for losing his temper, even if he still stood by what he had said. “Hey, it’s alright. You’re right, you know? I told Tommy this a long time ago, but L’Manberg was never about the land, it was about the people. L’Manberg was the community, the family we built. And the land itself might be gone but that bond is still there.”

Ranboo was staring at Wilbur in unabashed awe now, and Wilbur returned the look with a soft smile. A hand gently tugged at his, Ranboo only now realizing that he had been digging his claws into his own hand, and Wilbur held it in his own, pulling out some bandages from his inventory and tending to the small wounds.

“This isn’t a side. Frankly, I’m sick of war. I’m sick of fighting. All I want to do is make sure my family and my friends are okay. And maybe to give Dream a good punch to the face.” Ranboo giggled quietly at that. “You can be a part of that if you want. My family, that is. Or decking Dream, whichever you want.”

A full blown laugh burst out of his mouth and Wilbur chuckled alongside him, patting his hand and storing away the remaining bandages. Ranboo let out a soft trill as he poked at his newly wrapped hand, and his tail uncoiled and dropped to the ground swishing against the grass.

“I think I would like that.” Ranboo eyed the fish swimming in the pond for a moment. “No sides?”

“No sides.” Wilbur confirmed. “Just friends.”

“Just friends.”  
  


* * *

  
Ranboo was properly introduced to Fundy during breakfast, the fox hybrid telling anecdotes of elaborate pranks he had pulled off that left the three youngest giggling to themselves and the oldest two watching on in amusement. He spoke with Eret, thanking them again for their hospitality, to which the Royal just smiled serenely and told him he could pick any room he’d like. It wasn’t until after Tommy and Tubbo had left, wanting to grab a few things from their respective houses, and Fundy and Eret had wandered off to the library, did Ranboo bring up Phil again.

He was on the couch in the sitting room, Wilbur resting in a single chair off to the side and scribbling in a book. Ranboo brought out his own journal, flipping to the most recent page and just stared. He wanted to talk about it, Wilbur had told Ranboo he could tell him anything, but... Phil was Wilbur’s father, right? What if the man didn’t believe him?

A startled noise escaped him when the couch dipped next to him, Wilbur settling into the previously vacant spot. He was looking at Ranboo with a soft expression and some of the tension fell off of his shoulders.

“Everything alright?”

“Yes, um,” Ranboo cleared his throat nervously and glanced back down at his memory book and quickly storing it away again. “I remembered why I left Techno’s place.” Wilbur hummed, bringing a hand up to squeeze his shoulder and encouraging him to continue. “I was needing to borrow something, I’m not sure what it was now, and I think I walked in on a conversation I wasn’t supposed to hear?”

“What was it about?”

Ranboo shakily exhaled, a crackly whine escaping through clenched teeth, “Me. It was about me. Phil wanted to-” The firm hand on his shoulder moved to rub soothing circles on his upset back when he hesitated. “He wanted to ‘use my memory problems to their advantage’ or something. He said something like that, and some other things. And I’m not really sure what he meant but I thought to myself, ‘hey, that’s probably not good, we should go’. And I ran and I ended up in my panic room somehow, and I don’t really remember much after that but-”

He cut off as his head was pulled down to rest on Wilbur’s soft, sweater covered shoulder. The older man was combing a hand through his hair and muttering softly to him, but Ranboo was too far gone to understand the words, wheezing breath after painful, wheezing breath wrenching their way out of his chest. They sat like that until Ranboo was breathing steadily again, only the occasional whimper slipping out.

“Ranboo?” The enderman hybrid let out a _vroop_ in response. “You’re safe here. None of us would ever use your memory against you like that. Phil was so, _so_ in the wrong for even suggesting that in the first place. I won’t let _anyone_ take advantage of you like that ok?” Ranboo grumbled against the man's shoulder, not sounding convinced and the hand in his hair burrowed deeper as if in protest, startling a purr out of the teen. “I’m serious. No one should use your own memory against you, that’s cruel and I won’t allow it. Not from Philza, not from Technoblade, and not from Dream.” The hybrid’s tail whipped around erratically at the name and he huddled further against Wilbur. “And if anyone tries that shit, I want you to come straight to me, okay? Or, if it would make you feel more comfortable, go to Tommy or Tubbo, and one of them will get me.”

Ranboo sniffled and leaned back out of the hold, eyes firmly on Wilbur’s nose. “What will you do?”

“What would you want me to do? Yell at them? Beat their ass? Tell them to fuck off?”

He huffed a laugh to himself and thought about it. “Maybe- maybe just tell them to go away? I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“And I don’t want them to hurt you. But sure, we’ll stick with that.” Wilbur continued running a hand through Ranboo’s hair for a moment. “Now, it’s almost lunch, so how about I fix us something to eat?”

Ranboo’s stomach chose that moment to rumble weakly and he ducked his head as Wilbur chuckled. The elder stood and held out a hand, pulling Ranboo to his feet when the teen dropped a hand in his.

Wilbur didn’t comment when Ranboo murmured his thanks over mutton and carrots. Nor did he say anything when, over the next couple days, Ranboo stuck by his side, only leaving when Tubbo or Tommy would drag him off to show him something. He didn’t mention it when he woke up to a gentle knock on his door, a shivering hybrid falling into his arms and seeking comfort. And he didn’t say anything upon meeting Phil’s eye across the giant crater, Ranboo hunching down as much as he could and shuffling behind Wilbur, only glaring at the man and not relenting until his father was out of site.

He would save his voice for later, would wait for the right time to use it. Wilbur was never a fighter, not really, not with his fists or with a sword ( _not like Technoblade_ , a traitorous part of his kind whispered). But he knew how to attack with his words, knew how best to strike, and the precision it would take to break someone down without raising a single hand. He knew he couldn’t go after Phil, not outright. Technoblade would have his head before he so much as stepped into the snowy biome. But he could damn sure tear the man down by bringing up every wrong doing, every missed birthday, and every child he let down. He would break Phil, one way or another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> can you tell I’m very angry with c!Philza rn? I’m gonna live vicariously through c!Wilbur when he confronts dadza
> 
> one of these days I’ll write some good dad Phil content to balance it out


End file.
